Freelance Writer and Editor | Brisbane, Australia

Main Menu

Record review: Buchanan – Human Spring (2013, LP)

Having been around for four years and with two EPs under their belts, it’s time for Melbourne indie-pop band Buchanan to drop their debut album. Lead by Josh Simons, the band put touring on hold, virtually dropping off the radar in recent months to make this record, aided with production by Catherine Marks (Foals, Interpol) and mastering by Geoff Pesche (LCD Soundsystem, Radiohead). While it’s clear the band are trying to make the type of anthemic, atmospheric pop carried off so expertly by the likes of The Temper Trap and Two Door Cinema Club, most of the tracks fall so disappointingly short. Listening to the opening trio of ‘Act Natural’, ‘Par Avion’, and ‘The Punch’ is an exercise in waiting for the good stuff to start, before fourth song ‘Temptation’ ups the quality slightly by being one of the darker tunes on the album. Penultimate song ‘The Few’ has shades of Empire of the Sun, making it one of the more tolerable efforts, and closer ‘An All Clear?’ finishes the album on a strong note. The title track – also the lead single – is a slightly more ambitious affair than anything else one the album; all grandiose strings and soaring choruses, and sounds great in parts, although the majority of the tunes on Human Spring sound like they’d be most at home on the soundtrack of a crappy rom-com, making this one of the more forgettable releases of recent months. (Independent)